December 2018

Sermons

December 24, 2018 (Christmas Eve) - "Attitude of Gratitude: The Unexpected" by Rev. Cody Sandahl

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Lay Reader = Isaiah 9:2-7

Gospel Reading = Luke 2:1-20

2In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3All went to their own towns to be registered. 4Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. 5He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. 6While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. 7And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

8In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: 11to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. 12This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, 14“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” 15When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. 17When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; 18and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. 19But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. 20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Introduction

We have spent the last few weeks looking at ways we can have an attitude of gratitude. And some of the reasons we can choose to be grateful are a bit counter-intuitive. We saw how we can be grateful for our ability to change, grateful for uncomfortable truth, grateful for God’s promises – even the ones we haven’t received yet. But the core idea has been that we can choose to have an attitude of gratitude even in difficult or uncomfortable circumstances.

Today we are looking at how we can be grateful for the unexpected.

Unexpected

When Jesus was born, even though there were prophecies stretching back hundreds of years, he was unexpected. I mean, yeah, the Savior was supposed to be born in Bethlehem. Everyone knew that. But he was supposed to be born to royalty and power, not some anonymous poor family who really lived in that po-dunk middle-of-nowhere village of Nazareth. That was unexpected.

Everyone expected angels and portents to reveal the birth of the Messiah, but those angels were supposed to announce the news to the rulers and the priests and the prophets, not some anonymous shepherds. That was unexpected.

Have you seen any of the Avengers movies? They are filled with burly, supercharged, super strong, super fast, superheros. The one who isn’t burly and gifted with superpowers is Iron Man, who is super smart and super rich, so he has robot suits that effectively give him super powers.

Or maybe you’ve seen The Incredibles 2 recently? We showed that at our free Movie Night in November. Mr. Incredible is super strong. Dash is super fast. Violet has a super energy shield AND the super ability to become invisible. Elastigirl is super stretchy – like Gumby on steroids.

Sometimes we need to be rescued. And that’s when you call in the super strong, super fast, supercharged superheroes. If you need a savior, dial up Captain America, because he can run a mile in a minute, he can punch through a brick wall, and he has a shield that can’t be broken. That’s the kind of warrior that people expected when the Messiah came. Captain America.

Or…how about a baby in a manger? And this baby can’t even claim super rich status like Iron Man. Just a baby. Is that who you want for your savior? A baby whose parents have to bum a spot in a stable because they can’t afford and can’t find anything better? Does that sound like a good bet? Is that going to win your Fantasy Football league? That’s unexpected.

God Is With Us in the Bad Unexpected

Think back on this year. What happened this year in your life? What happened at your work? What happened in your family? What happened with your friends? What happened inside your heart or mind? What happened with health? Think back on this year.

How much of it was expected? How much was unexpected? How much did this year go according to plan?

There’s a Christian joke that we plan and God laughs.

Maybe you’ve had a lot of unexpectedly bad things happen this year. Maybe you lost a loved one. Maybe you lost a job. Maybe you had a falling out with someone. Maybe you had a big project fail. Maybe you dropped the ball on something. Maybe your life seems darker today than it did on January 1. The unexpected happens. Sometimes it’s unexpectedly bad.

As I wrote that sentence last week, I was sitting in a restaurant and the power went out – all the employees screamed in surprise. It was unexpected. The whole place went dark. But you know what happened a little bit later? The lights came back on. The employees cheered. Of course, then the power failed again, but hey.

In our first reading, the prophet Isaiah said, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness – on them a light has shined.”

If this year has been unexpectedly bad, if you have been walking in darkness, that doesn’t mean God has abandoned you. Isaiah says that’s when God is watching closely. And you don’t have to be someone important for God to be near in the midst of your darkness. On Christmas, the angels didn’t come to the Emperor Augustus. They didn’t come to Governor Quirinius. They didn’t come to Herod the king. They didn’t come to Annas or Caiaphas the high priests. They didn’t even come to the mayor of Bethlehem. Nope.

The angels came to shepherds. Shepherds weren’t famous. They weren’t important. In fact, they were looked down upon by others as untrustworthy. Like vagrants. They worked in darkness and were treated with darkness by others. To them a light shined.

If you have been experiencing darkness this year, God is with you. God is with you. God is with you. You aren’t beneath notice. You aren’t abandoned. God is watching. And indeed, God is nearby. God is with you. That’s the Christmas message. God is with us in Jesus. But really, you need to know that in Jesus God is with you.

God Can Bring About Unexpected Good

So that was this year. What about next year?

Part of the Christmas message is that God is with us in the darkness. But the other half of the Christmas message is that God is shining a light into that darkness. If a Savior comes to save, things might be different, right?

If Jesus is with us in the unexpectedly bad, Jesus also brings the hope of the unexpectedly good.

For this story to make sense, you first have to keep in mind that I am a super geek. I am equally geeky whether we’re talking Star Wars or Star Trek. I might have learned Spanish in school, but I simultaneously taught myself two other languages: Russian (somewhat useful)…and Klingon. Yes, Klingon, the fake language from Star Trek. I had the Klingon-English dictionary. And I didn’t hide it, I was proud of it. Are you tracking? Super geek.

So my son Caleb is a very curious 3-year-old. And oh boy is he a talker. One day we were shopping at Target and he was making up sounds. And the sound he made was “ka-plah!” I was over-the-moon excited. Because qapla’ is one of the most famous Klingon words. “Most famous” is an admittedly relative term here. He saw me laughing and kept saying qapla’ over and over again. I taught him that there are different languages, and that word means “success” in Klingon. I warned him that not many people know qapla’. If you see him, tell him qapla’ and he’ll be very happy that you know it, too.

Now whenever I put him to bed he begs me to teach him new Klingon words. His new favorite is “forshak” which you say when something stinks. Boy humor still applies in Klingon, apparently.

Now this is of course unexpected. And it’s fun for me as a super geek dad. And yes, teaching him Spanish would be way more useful. But it was fascinating a couple of weeks ago. We were at a dad-and-kid event at his preschool, and the father and son across from us were speaking a different language. And I didn’t have to tell him – he knew they were speaking words in another language. So, being the extroverted talker that he is, he waved at them and shouted, “Qapla’!”

I didn’t even try to explain it to them. And I was laughing too hard to explain anyway.

What’s the point? My 3-year-old has learned that there are different languages, and he thinks different languages are fun, because he stumbled onto a Klingon word and his super geek dad just had to double down on that.

That’s unexpected. I didn’t plan for that. I guarantee you my wife never expected she would need to learn Klingon words. If I tried to set a goal to teach him Spanish or Russian, he probably wouldn’t be as excited as he is because he discovered Klingon on his own. It’s better than I could have planned.

What unexpected good is possible next year? Jesus is with us in the unexpectedly bad, but Jesus also brings the hope for unexpected good as well. If the people in darkness have seen a great light, they don’t have to be in darkness anymore. Things can be different.

So is there any darkness in your life that could unexpectedly change for the better next year?

If your relationships are in darkness, there’s hope for light next year.

If your mind or emotions or soul are in darkness, there’s hope for light next year.

If your health is in darkness, there’s hope for light next year.

I don’t know what that light looks like. Jesus tends to be unexpected. It might not be what you want it to be. It might not be on your wish list for Santa. It might be unexpected…but it might be better.

Summary

Sisters and brothers, the first half of the Christmas message is that God is always with us in Jesus. The second half of the Christmas message is that there is always hope because of Jesus. It probably won’t be Captain America leaping out to save the day, but there is always hope. There is always hope. There is always hope.

And if that hope turns into unexpected good, don’t forget to shout qapla’ for success! My 3-year-old will be mighty proud of you. Merry Christmas.

Sermons

December 23, 2018 - "Attitude of Gratitude: The Truth" by Rev. Cody Sandahl

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Lay Reader = Luke 1:39-55

39In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, 40where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? 44For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. 45And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” 46And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. 50His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 51He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 52He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; 53he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. 54He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 55according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”

Introduction

We are almost – but not quite – there ! Tomorrow is Christmas Eve! Christmas Eve means we’re almost at Christmas Day! Christmas Day means presents and good food! We’ve been hearing good tales of Christmas spirit all over the news. Good times!

And yet our Scripture today starts off with John the Baptist calling the crowds “you brood of vipers.” “Mission Control to John – did you get the Christmas Cheer memo? It was on bright candy cane striped paper – hard to miss it.” John is such a buzzkill, right?

It reminds me of the pilot episode for a show we just started watching – The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. One of the first scenes features the main character, Midge, giving a rousing celebratory speech at her wedding reception. She thanks the Rabbi. She thanks her father. She proclaims her undying love for her husband. And then her walk-off line, to this esteemed gathering of upstanding Jewish folk – “And yes, the spring rolls have shrimp in them.” And she walks off with a smile. The Rabbi throws his arms up and walks out in a huff – shrimp aren’t kosher.

In the midst of a wonderful party, Midge dropped a little nugget of truth on the party-goers.

John the Baptist does the same today. Yes, it is glorious news that Jesus is born. Yes, it is glorious news that God is with us. Yes, it is glorious news that we have a Savior in-person. But here’s John to drop a little truth on us as we party.

Luke 3:7-18

7John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. 9Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” 10And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” 11In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.” 12Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” 13He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.” 14Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”

15As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, 16John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” 18So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

False Flattery

It was the year 2000. And I had a website. That’s all that was required back in those days. And it was in those heady days of the dot-com bubble that I, freshly-graduated from high school, not quite a freshman in college, owner of a website, received an offer in the mail.

“Dear Mr. Cody Sandahl. We would like you to know that you have been pre-approved for a new line of credit for your online business. Enclosed is a credit card with a limit of $750,000. Simply sign the enclosed letter and return it to accept this incredible offer!”

Never mind that my website was not, in fact, a business. Never mind that my website did not, in fact, even attempt to make money. Never mind that I was not, in fact, even legally old enough to own a credit card. $750,000…pre-approved!

It makes me wonder. What on earth does pre-approved mean? If you can’t even check if age is greater than or equal to 18, what are you checking? What would it take to get pre-denied?

Now this offer might sound good – especially to a 17-year-old discovering his new-found freedom after high school. But then again – what good would come from a 17-year-old owning a $750,000 credit card? And even if I had signed the paperwork, I’m pretty sure – not 100%, but pretty sure – I would have eventually been denied because of my age.

It was all a sham. It was false flattery. It wasn’t real. And even if it had been real, throwing $750,000 with a high interest rate at a teenager going into his freshman year of college is a bad idea.

Have you ever received such false flattery? Fake compliments or endorsements? Shallow praise? Maybe it even felt good for a moment, but you knew it wasn’t real?

Uncomfortable Truth

One of the reasons people thought John the Baptist was a prophet was that he wasn’t selling a sham. He wasn’t known for false flattery. He wasn’t telling people what they wanted to hear to make them happy. That’s what false prophets did. Real prophets were known for saying uncomfortable truth, not happy thoughts.

I’ve shared before that John the Baptist was in a rather inconvenient location. Even now, the tourist trap – I mean holy site – dedicated to John the Baptist is actually located at a spot that’s more convenient than the real one. If that spot is in the middle of nowhere today, imagine how out of the way it was back then.

So the first people who came to be baptized by John were really motivated. And they were so transformed by the experience that they told others. And then those people were transformed and told others. And before you knew it, John the Baptist was all the rage! His remote location was the place to see and be seen.

It’s kind of like Burning Man. It started in the 80’s with a few friends burning a wooden sculpture on the summer solstice as an act of radical self-expression. Then it moved to a remote location in the Nevada desert and started growing into a community event. By the mid-90’s there were a few thousand people. By the turn of the millennium there were 25,000. By 2010 there were 50,000. Now they cap it at 70,000 tickets and it costs several hundred dollars for the right to express yourself in the Nevada desert. It’s now a thing. It’s an event. It’s a place to see and be seen.

Or maybe you knew about a band before they became famous? What happens when a band becomes famous? The early people start saying the band has “sold out” and the new people don’t “get it” like the original fans do.

We humans are kind of pack animals. We flock to the same things. And sometimes that means we’re just showing up because other people are showing up.

That’s why John lays into the crowd. He knows that many of them are there for the spectacle, not the transformation. Jesus did the same thing. Whenever he started gathering crowds because of his fame instead of his teaching, Jesus said something controversial and difficult. The timing wasn’t a coincidence.

When I was in seminary I had a semester as a chaplain at one of the local hospitals. It was early on, and I wasn’t totally sure what I was doing. Visiting someone you know in the hospital is one thing, but cold calls on sick people is a different mindset. Near the end of the uncomfortable visit, I offered to pray with her. And she said, “If that will make you feel better.” Ouch. That was uncomfortable truth about my efficacy as a chaplain during that visit.

The previous summer I took over as the children’s director at the church where I was doing my internship, because their children’s director was on maternity leave the whole summer. It was my first paying gig in ministry. I had everything organized. I had all the volunteers lined up. I was in the room early along with the music person. It was about five minutes before the kids arrived, and I asked the music person if I was missing anything. He replied, “Well, if you keep pacing around like that I think everyone’s going to be just as nervous as you are.” I said, “Good point,” and sat down. That was uncomfortable truth.

Would you rather hear false flattery or uncomfortable truth? Would you rather live in a pleasant fiction or face reality? Think about that for real. The answer to that question may be uncomfortable, because most people don’t like to be challenged.

The Good News About Uncomfortable Truth and High Expectations

When we were in high school, my brother was pretty short but was a really good basketball player. But he had a fatal flaw – his jump shot was really flat. Your shot is supposed to arc up and then sink down into the goal. That’s true for everyone, but if you’re short, you really need to have some arc on your shot to get over the outstretched arms of the defender.

One day after school, my dad brought my brother out to our court and told him to shoot a 3-pointer. And for some reason my dad had a large piece of cardboard. My brother dribbled out to the 3-point line, wound up, and released his shot. THWACK! My dad swatted the shot away with the cardboard.

“Again!” he said. My brother dribbled to the side to get away and released a quick shot. THWACK! “Again!”

Over and over and over again. It was a popcorn and lemonade-worthy spectacle as the younger brother, and my goodness it looked like fun to be the cardboard-wielder. But what was the point? My brother wanted to be better at basketball, and to do that he needed more arc on his shot. Learn to shoot over a grown man with two extra feet of cardboard and you’ll have arc on your shot.

But my dad only did this once my brother was in high school. And my dad only did this once my brother said he wanted to get better. He didn’t swat away every shot when we were in elementary school. He didn’t force us to improve our skills when we were just having fun in middle school. It was only once my brother was capable of getting better and said he wanted to get better.

And that’s why our text today says after these harsh words from John, “with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.” Why is it good news to get uncomfortable truth? Why can we be grateful for the truth?

Uncomfortable truth is good news because it assumes that the hearer can do something about it. The cardboard only came out when my brother was capable of improving and wanted to improve. It was a sign of respect.

Peter Drucker, one of the most-respected leadership and management experts today, said that, “Leadership is not magnetic personality. That can just as well be a glib tongue. It is not making friends and influencing people; that is flattery. Leadership is lifting a person’s vision to higher sights, the raising of a person’s performance to a higher standard, the building of a personality beyond its normal limitations.”

The woman telling me to pray only if it would make me feel better was implying that I had the capability to become a better chaplain. The music leader telling me I was pacing was implying that I could become a better children’s director. My dad swatting away my brother’s shot with glorious repetition was implying that my brother could become a better basketball player.

John the Baptist is implying that we can, in fact, bear fruit worthy of repentance.

John is implying that we can, in fact, be the kind of neighbors who share our extra coats and food.

John is implying that we can, in fact, be the kind of workers who are honest even when everyone else is being dishonest. That’s what he told the tax-collectors.

John is implying that we can, in fact, be the kind of leaders who serve instead of exploiting our position. That’s what he told the soldiers.

John is implying that we can, in fact, live lives that Jesus would consider to be sustaining wheat, not useless chaff.

That’s good news! That’s exciting! But it means facing the uncomfortable truth about the parts of our lives that might not be sustaining wheat yet.

Looking through Jesus’ eyes, what parts of your life need to be burned like chaff so that the sustaining wheat can grow with abundance? Looking through Jesus’ eyes, what parts of your life need to be sifted, winnowed, and cleared? Think about that. It might be uncomfortable, but it also implies that Jesus has something better in mind for you.

One Thing

The house I grew up in was right on Lake Austin. And we had our own boat dock right on our property, and all the water skiing gear you could wish for. We had a family friend who was an OK skier, but he was always trying to get better. So pretty routinely, he would bring an article from a ski magazine, and he had circled or highlighted like seven different things to try. And as he thought about all these changes – improvements to his technique – he would go from an OK skier to someone who couldn’t even get up out of the water. Too many changes at once.

As you think about the chaff in your life, the uncomfortable truths, don’t pick seven areas to work on. Just pick one, or you’re going to get overwhelmed by too many changes at once. My dad helped my brother work on the arc of his shot – that’s it. Just that one thing. Other changes can come later. Just pick one thing.

Look back over John’s list if you’re having trouble. John chastises people for following the crowd. He points out false pride, arrogance, and entitlement. He highlights selfishness and blindness to others’ needs. He calls out people in positions of authority for abuse and corruption and dishonesty. He even points out where people are following a false hope – in this case, people thinking he is the Messiah instead of Jesus.

Anything on that list ring a bell? It might be uncomfortable, but the implication is that John thinks you can raise your horizon, raise your expectation, and actually be better. It’s good news because it’s possible and because John believes in you.

That’s good news. John wants you to hear uncomfortable truth because he believes in you. Jesus wants you to hear uncomfortable truth because he believes in you. That’s a pretty good endorsement. Even if it comes with an uncomfortable truth. Amen.

Sermons

December 9, 2018 - "Attitude of Gratitude: The Ability to Change" by Rev. Cody Sandahl

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Lay Reader = Luke 3:1-6

1In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, 2during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, 4as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; 6and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”

Introduction

As we get ready for Christmas, we are looking at having an attitude of gratitude. This week we are looking at being grateful for our ability to change. Now, humans go to some pretty extreme lengths to avoid the need to change, so why should we be grateful for our ability to change?

Well, most of you know that I carry both a Geek card and a Nerd card – and if you have strong opinions on the differences between geeks and nerds, you probably are a card-carrying member of both groups as well. You may have picked up from some of my high school stories that I also used to have a superiority complex. Not an inferiority complex – a superiority complex. I went out of my way to make sure my fellow students knew I was smarter than them.

And so Becca and I joke that it’s a good thing we didn’t meet until I was out of college and mellowed out a little bit, because she would have hated me if we had met in high school.

I’m glad I was able to change! It was a good thing! Even if you somehow proved to me that God doesn’t exist, I would still be grateful for that life change. Life’s better this way.

Many people think that following Jesus means you have to give up a bunch of stuff. But I see it differently. I look at everything I’ve changed in my life because of my faith, and I think I traded up! I didn’t give up a sports car for a reliable but boring station wagon, I traded in for a better model.

So this week we are looking at how we can be grateful for how following Jesus has made our lives different – in a good way.

Many of the letters in the New Testament are about Paul or Peter or someone else encouraging the members of a church to change their lives in light of their faith in Jesus. Our text today is from Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi. Listen for Paul’s attitude of gratitude, and his encouragement for the church to choose a better way of living for Jesus.

Philippians 1:3-11

3I thank my God every time I remember you, 4constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, 5because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now. 6I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.

7It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because you hold me in your heart, for all of you share in God’s grace with me, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the compassion of Christ Jesus.

9And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight 10to help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, 11having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.

Choose to be Filled with Love and Joy

When Becca and I started dating, I had a very fortunate coincidence. For the first year we were dating, the University of Texas Longhorns did not lose a single game. We won one of the greatest games in college football history against Southern Cal to win the national title. Good times. That was a very fortunate coincidence. Because my dad, my brother, and I become well and truly grumpy whenever the Longhorns lose.

Actually, I’m giving us too much credit. We’re grumpy whenever a single play goes wrong during a game – even if we’re winning. My dad once complained that our third string defense gave up a touchdown at the end of a game so instead of winning 56-0 we lost the shutout at the end. And if that bad play is because these 18-to-22-year-olds make a mental mistake? You don’t want to be around us when that happens. When we lose, my day is ruined.

So it’s a good thing Becca and I didn’t meet in high school, and it’s a good thing we started dating during Texas’ last national championship season. The angels were on my side.

And a week ago my Longhorns were playing for the conference championship against the Godless heathens also known as the Oklahoma Sooners. So you know where I was last Saturday at 10am Mountain Time? Not watching the game, that’s for sure! I expected us to lose (which we did), and I knew that I would just be grumpy all day if I watched it. So I just tracked the score online and therefore only became slightly perturbed when we lost.

I still care, but I am a better person to be around when I’m not watching the game live. Paul writes in our text today that he is praying for the church in Philippi to be filled with love and joy. Watching the Longhorns lose doesn’t fill me with love and joy. Watching the Longhorns win doesn’t even fill me with love and joy. So I rarely watch a game live anymore. And I am better off because of it.

I still track the score. I still know the players’ names. But now my attitude on Saturday isn’t determined by the athletic performance of 18-to-22-year-olds playing a game a thousand miles away from me.

Before I became a pastor and moved to Pennsylvania, I had been to just about every home football game from the time I was one year old. My dad made sure we stayed the whole game so we could sing the Eyes of Texas to honor the players at the end of the game whether they were victorious or went down in defeat. Longhorn football wasn’t just a habit or ritual – it was an obligation.

Except it wasn’t. I could choose to change at any time. I could choose to do more of the things that fill me with love and joy, as Paul prayed for the church in Philippi, and less of the things that drain me of love and joy. At any time.

Did you know that you can, too? You can choose to do more of the things that fill you with love and joy and do less of the things that drain you of love and joy. Even if it feels like a habit, or a ritual, or even an obligation. You have choices. Now sometimes choices have consequences, but you have choices.

We can be grateful for the ability to change – to choose to do more of the things that fill us with love and joy and less of the things that drain our love and joy. That’s good news!

What fills you with love and joy? How can you do more of those things?

What drains you of love and joy? How can you do less of those things – even if they feel like obligations?

Choose a Better Community

Just last week, a 9-year-old boy in Severance, CO, made a choice to help his community be filled with love and joy. For the last one hundred years, it has been illegal to have snowball fights within the city limits because snowballs were classified as “missiles.”

Being a law-abiding citizen but also enjoying snowball fights, Dane Best took the matter before the city council. “Today’s kids need reasons to play outside,” Best said, “Research suggests that a lack of exposure to the outdoors can lead to obesity, ADHD, anxiety and depression.” He was ready!

After agreeing that snowballs shouldn’t have rocks in them, and that windows shouldn’t be targeted, the town voted unanimously to reclassify snowballs and end the century-old ban. Dane was given the honor of throwing the first legal snowball in the town of Severance in over a hundred years. The second throw went to younger brother Dax, later identified as Dane’s preferred snowball fight opponent.

That may seem like a silly example of change, but Dane Best wanted a better community and he worked to make it happen. He wanted more joy and love and fun outdoors in the winter, and he chose to have a better community rather than just complaining about it.

We can choose to invest in a better community. We can help our community change to be better – to have more love and joy as Paul prayed for the church in Philippi.

Many of you know that the apartment complex just up the road from us caught fire again, displacing over a hundred seniors. They just found out the building has been declared uninhabitable, so they have no homes. Our partners at Love in the Name of Christ are coordinating efforts to help. Our mission committee sent some funds. Our Deacons sent some King Soopers gift cards. I know a few people from our church have volunteered to help. Ella, one of our youth, is collecting donations today for the cause. Because they wanted this community to be better. There isn’t a formal plan about what to do to house these people displaced by the fire. We could say, “Oh that’s a shame,” or we could say, “What can I do to help?”

Whether that’s physical help, or counseling help, or just helping people wade through insurance claims, what kind of community do we want to live in? And how can we choose to help that happen? It may be harder than getting snowball fights approved, but how can you invest in a better community? A community that experiences more love and more joy as Paul prayed for the church in Philippi? If God is calling you to help with that particular situation, the contact number for Love INC is in your bulletin. Pitch in. Lend a neighborly hand. They aren’t just our figurative neighbors – they’re our “just down the street” neighbors.

We can choose to have a better community.

Choose a Different Attitude

We heard in our first text that John the Baptist came “proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” And then we saw this quote from Isaiah, “all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” That’s an interesting pairing to me.

That’s interesting because usually when we think about repentance, I think we picture fire and brimstone. Turn or burn. I think the word repentance usually conjures fear.

But here the Gospel of Luke is focusing not on fear, but on joy. “Every valley shall be filled, every mountain and hill shall be made low, the crooked [paths] shall be made straight, and the rough ways smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

That’s good news, right? Do you want the obstacles in your way lowered? Do you want the twists and turns that take you away from your destination to become straight? This is like getting a tunnel through the mountains on I-70 instead of having to wind your way around them. This is good news!

So reading this, I think another choice we have, another way we can choose to change, is to choose a different attitude. We don’t have to be afraid. We don’t have to be guilty. We don’t have to be grumpy. We don’t have to be self-absorbed. Instead, Paul writes to the church in Philippi to be filled with insight, to be pure, to be filled with praise for God, to hold each other in our hearts, to show compassion.

We can choose a different attitude – our attitude can change. That’s good news!

I remember at one of my previous churches, there was a woman in one of my small groups. She was volunteering at church and other really good organizations. But in her personal life she was a bit more self-absorbed. Kind of out of the blue, in the middle of one of our small group meetings, everything clicked for her. She realized that her faith could be more than just serving a lot of places. It could transform her inner attitudes as well. And that would be an improvement for her.

And very quickly she did change. She didn’t have one of those dramatic, drug addict to saint kind of transformations. She was a fine person before, but then she became a really deep follower of Jesus. And it wasn’t a loss for her. It was gain.

What inner attitudes could be transformed by your faith in Jesus? Where have you been a little self-absorbed? Where have you been a bit grumpy? Where have you felt afraid or guilty? Choose a different attitude in the name of Jesus Christ. It will be good news for you.

Summary

Sisters and brothers, Jesus doesn’t want to nag us into change. Jesus is offering us a better way forward. Maybe that’s doing more of the things that fill you with love and joy, and doing less of the things that drain your love and joy. Maybe that’s choosing to have a better community. Maybe that’s choosing a different inner attitude.

Those aren’t changes to fear. Those aren’t changes to avoid. They’re changes to embrace. To be grateful. What change could make your life better in the name of Christ? Amen.